Protocol for the Delivery and Receipt of Petitions and Submissions

This page sets out the parameters for the delivery and receipt of petitions and submissions to the University. Please ensure that you read the below information before proceding to the online proforma.

Accountability

The Secretary to Council is the designated Senior Officer with accountability for Governance processes within the University. As such, the Secretary to Council is the most appropriate person to receive and acknowledge all petitions and submissions to whomsoever addressed.

Delivery and Receipt

Any individual or group wishing to deliver a petition or submission should, in the first instance, complete an online proforma. Details of a lead person must be provided on the proforma. If it is the wish to also deliver the petition or submission in person, an appointment will be arranged by the Secretary to Council's Office using the contact details provided on the proforma.

The petition or submission can be delivered in person to the University’s registered address at University House reception and, subject to prior appointment, will be received by the Secretary to Council. Given the limited space available with University House reception, a maximum of four individuals (plus a photographer, if required) are invited to attend the appointment with the Secretary to Council.

Postal submissions should be addressed to the Secretary to Council at University House (the University’s registered address), and should include details of a lead person. Confirmation of receipt will be provided to the lead person, via email.

A Sabbatical Officer of the Students Union should be present at the point of delivery of any petition or submission from the student body. Likewise, a Trades Union representative would be invited, where appropriate, to be present at the point of delivery of any staff-related petition or submission in which a Trades Union is involved. There is no expectation that a Trades Union representative would be in attendance at the point of delivery if a Trades Union is not involved in the matter.

At time of delivery and receipt, the Secretary to Council will not be in a position to comment on the nature or content of the petition or submission. The University will consider petitions or submissions through its Governance processes, as applicable.

All paper-based petitions and submissions will be referenced and retained within the University’s Modern Records Centre. Electronic copies of all petitions/submissions will also be kept by the Secretary to Council's Office.

An annual report will be taken to the University’s Steering Committee detailing all petitions and submissions received through this process during the course of the Academic year.

Given the wide range of submissions that the University receives, and to ensure consistency of approach, no petitions or submissions will be received outside of this agreed process.

Any queries on the operation of this process should be forwarded to the Secretary to Council's Office via SecretarytoCouncilPA at warwick dot ac dot uk.